Belfast boxing legend Close dies aged 57 — SkimNews
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- Ray Close, born in Belfast in 1969 and turned professional in 1988, died at the age of 57 after a career that included 25 wins, 3 defeats and 1 draw.
- Close won the EBU Super Middleweight title on St Patrick's Day 1993, but is best remembered for twice fighting Chris Eubank, then unbeaten in 35 bouts, for the WBO super-middleweight title.
- Close and Eubank fought to a draw in Glasgow in May 1993, before Close lost the rematch on a split decision at Belfast's King's Hall the following year.
- Close's boxing licence was revoked by the British Boxing Board of Control after an MRI scan revealed two brain lesions, cancelling a scheduled third fight with Eubank.
- Close later obtained a licence in the USA and won all five of his subsequent bouts in Illinois, finishing with a knockout of Larry Willis in June 1997.
- Ledley Hall Youth and Boxing Club in east Belfast, where Close started boxing aged 10, called him a "true gentleman, humble, kind and always willing to give something back," while Bangor Abbey Boxing Academy said he would be a "huge loss to the boxing fraternity of Ireland and across the world."
Why it matters: Close's career arc — peaking against one of the era's most avoided fighters, then derailed by a brain scan — captures both the promise and the medical risks that defined 1990s super-middleweight boxing. For Belfast's grassroots clubs, his trajectory from a 10-year-old at Ledley Hall to a European titleholder is now the legacy they are racing to preserve.
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